The Grand Weave

"Wha-I... Ahhhh."

My consciousness tried to form something but was rebuffed. Instead, I pushed closer and came within spitting distance.

The fairy had bronze skin that gleamed in the golden light. Her eyes were golden orbs and her hair was rivulets of oxidized metal, filled with splotches of green. Her wings were an amalgamation of floating blades and gears that spun in place.

"Go away!" the masculine voice screamed.

"You." I pointed a finger that didn't exist but the connection allowed something to pass through since the dungeoncore pulled away. "Explain yourself."

The fairy finally found courage and held up her hands. "Please don't hurt us. We're so sorry."

"Names."

The core pulsed. "Gi-Gimbal."

"Neolenn," the fairy offered.

I checked in with Galarion and he gave me a mental thumbs-up. The strain had lessened and he was eating his fill as he helped reduce the pain. He served as Xena did and funneled away the useless information.

But it would overwhelm him and me, soon.

Got to get through this before the connection breaks.

Once more I pulled on information from the perk. What the dungeon had did was against the unspoken rules.

"Why did you attack me and my friend? You broke the pact as dungeon master and ambushed an occupied floor."

"We didn't!" Gimbal protested. "We didn't summon new monsters!"

His companion slapped his side, the metal of her hand ringing against the crystalized glass beneath the curtain of mana that made up Gimbal's form.

"Shut up!"

"Bu-"

I shook my head. "I don't care. Answer my question or I'll force my way into the core room."

It was an empty threat, but they didn't know it. I wasn't about to rob a kingdom of a highly populated dungeon in the center of their capital city.

There was some whispering at the edges of my thoughts, like a sound I wasn't supposed to hear.

Eventually, Neolenn nodded slowly.

"My apologies, lord. We were afraid. Never before has a mortal connected with the dungeon. We reacted poorly. Forgive us."

"No."

Neolenn took a step back and Gimbal shifted to protect her.

"I won't let you touch her!"

The mana thread I used as an anchor to my body was starting to fray at the edges. There wasn't much time left.

"Cease your attempts at an attack. If you force my hand..."

Galarion stepped in and transmitted the memories of Xena trapped and alone. Her connection with her core severed as he was caught under the god's control.

I lowered my voice but kept it neutral. "Do you two understand?"

"Yes!" they spoke.

I was ready to leave it at that, but they did try to kill Sereza and me.

"As an apology I require a boon. You will give it to the felkin that was with me. Is that understood?"

"Bu-"

Smack!

Neolenn nodded vigorously. "We understand. It will be done."

The mana thread was on its last legs. I channeled my voice in a final warning even as my consciousness was tugged back to my body.

"I plan on ascending. It will release an energy that will draw eyes upon your dungeon. Mention nothing to those who ask lest you seek destruction. Do not interfere, do not divulge my secrets, and do not touch my companions."

I saw the fairy shiver with shaky hands before the connection snapped and I crashed back into my body.

The tingling burned and I leaned to the side, coughing up blood that coated my tongue.

I waved off the other's concern as I basked in Teddy's skill. Once I felt whole enough to speak I finally opened my eyes and groaned.

"That sucked."

"What did you do?" Isaac snarled.

I looked to the ceiling and growled.

"Cyrus?" Celenae asked.

There we go...

Mana formed and the others felt it but I held up a hand and pointed to the ground where a small brass chest was materializing.

The others stared in shock and I waited till the mana stopped before nudging the chest closer to Sereza.

"Got you an apology gift. Don't ask."

"How could I not?!" she protested.

I shrugged. "Just don't. Not like you haven't seen this before."

She massaged her temples and grabbed the box. She inspected it and probed the lock. If it was boobytrapped I was going to maim the core, consequences be damned.

She opened it carefully and Celenae was ready with her fingers twitching, purple light wisping off her fingers.

But as Sereza opened the chest, she cocked her head. "Huh."

"Well? What is it?" Isaac asked.

She pulled out a small brass vial shaped like a teardrop. It was corked with a wood stopper and had a latch holding it down.

I spotted the runes for containment and preserve etched into the lip.

"Should I open it?"

"Wait!" Igas shouted.

The betting board appeared and there was a round of bets before Sereza was finally allowed to open the mystery vial.

A sharp odor filled the room. It was pungent, and acrid, like the world's strongest bleach. As it settled a tinge of ozone similar to being near Eodyne during her attacks crawled into the back of my throat.

I tasted copper and rust.

Sereza lightly poured a drop onto the floor where it sat.

"Well that's disappointing. From the smell I almost expected it to melt through the floor."

I had a hunch and summoned a spool of metal thread. I measured a few inches and held it in front of Isaac. "Cut this please?"

He hesitant swiped his dagger cleanly through before staring at the spool. "What's that?"

"Loot. From the spider golems."

I positioned the thread over the drop and slowly lowered it into the liquid. Instantly, the thread sizzled and melted away. The liquid didn't stop, the drop climbed the thread and I let go as it ate it whole.

"Well," I said. "Looks like its metal-specific acid. Congrats. Can you absorb it?"

"Maybe?" Sereza held the vial closer and hummed before inserting it into her bandolier. "You know what? Thanks. I was looking for an acid strong enough to eat through metals."

I grinned and let Celenae begin her battery of tests. As she did, I summoned the loot we acquired and handed them over. The golem core was especially interesting, but Celenae did her best to control her obsession and catalogued the items.

While everyone finally settled I closed my eyes and started refining my mana channels. The faster I ranked up the quicker we could get out of the dungeon.

-------

I opened my eyes and breathed in the chill air around us. It was soothing in a way, and I used the distraction to center myself.

Celenae and Teddy were playing a boardgame while Sereza, Igas, and Isaac argued about something. Only Eodyne was alone and resting her eyes.

"It's time," I declared.

The conversations ceased.

"Truly?" Celenae asked, eagerly.

I nodded. "It is. Do you still want to go through the transformations and log them before I pushed the last rank?"

A pile of notebooks appeared and she rifled through the pages.

Sereza crossed her arms. "So we did all this so you can tier up? I mean congrats, but why all the secrecy for just tier two?"

"Oh Sereza," Isaac said as he patted her shoulder. "I'll toast your death."

"What in the hells are you talking about?"

A shot glass was in his hand, and judging by the smell it was some form of rum. He downed it and hissed as a drop spilled down his throat.

"To your innocence. May it be cherished now that it is lost."

Igas shook his head. "I think we've been in the capital too long. Teddy's parents are rubbing off on you."

Isaac froze, his eyes filled with panic.

I chuckled and stood up. "You'll find out soon enough. You ready, Celenae?"

"Yes. You may begin. Start with Áine."

I channeled Verdant Healer and Spirit Lord's Invocation. Áine appeared long enough to twirl before her form broke apart.

As her mana settled into place I raised my arms and stared at the subtle glow along my fingers.

"I don't remember my skin glowing."

"Glowing skin could be like Magnus' change. Just another visual representation. Has your ability to heal changed at all?"

I used my nails to cut my arm and sent a burst of mana into the injury. It sealed and looked as good as new.

"Same as before."

I closed my eyes and felt the mana nodes on my back. Part of me hoped there was a change, like the beginning of wings but I would settle for seeing what the tier one evolution brought to the table.

"Alright, next?"

I undid the transformation and hugged Áine goodbye. Zharia was next and she turned into a miniature inferno as she appeared.

"Ready!"

Her transformation was the same as usual, and so was Magnus's.

I let each of my familiars have their time modelling for Celenae who drew a picture for each of them before they returned to my soulspace.

Erebus was fourth and this time I did notice a subtle change to the transformation.

"These are sharper, maybe a centimeter longer too," I said while splaying my claws for Celenase to examine. "Strange. I think Erebus' transformation is nearly as unused as Áine's. Why would it change?"

"Could be your perception or even your familiar's perception of the skill."

"Erebus might have learned to refine the looting process on his own and that influenced the change," Teddy added.

I shrugged. Any change was welcome. It meant progress.

The skill deactivated and Sturmrorex appeared in a flash of light accompanied by the crackle of thunder and a howling gale. Fog spilled forth wetting the skin of everyone within reach.

"Hey!" Celenae growled. She looked up behind her barrier and pointed her pen like a knife.

The effects stopped and Sturmrorex apologized. I cut the guy some slack and activated my skill.

There was a change, a lot less subtle than the others. I tugged at my hair and summoned a mirror. The edges of silver were tinged with bright orange.

"It's grown too. Maybe an inch?" Sereza said.

Celenae jotted it down. "Noted. Skill changes?"

I extended my hand and shot a bolt of electricity into the wall. It singed it black and I inhaled slowly. The very air around me felt alive, and under control as if I could nudge it any direction, and change its path.

Damn. This is cool.

It was a transformation I had been egregiously under utilizing. That would have to change going forward. The ability to command the sky to my will was too tempting to let lie.

"No changes."

When Sturmrorex reformed he beamed with pride and pushed his head against mine.

"I'm excited!" he whispered.

"We're not conquering the skies yet, but we're getting closer."

"The heavens will shake with our roar!"

I hugged him tight and said goodbye, pausing long enough to get everyone's attention.

"Next is Galarion. I know some of you are uncomfortable, so I'm warning you ahead of time."

"Just don't touch my head or I'll stab you," Isaac grumbled.

"Promise I won't. Am I allowed to begin?"

Galarion plopped out of my skull and squished into my awaiting palm. He was wearing a robe this time, one made of swirling clouds of cosmic dust.

He saluted and I saluted back. As he entered my body, there was a gentle pressure on my mind that expanded my senses.

As the transformation took hold I opened my eyes and stared at the world.

Woah.

Things were the same but there were additional elements. Surrounding each person was an aura of colored light just above their skin. Eodyne's was blinding blue and sharp. It spiked in places and were calm in others, and as I caught her gaze the aura turned jagged.

Isaac's was the same, more of a black haze but with jagged lines that grew sharper the longer I stared.

"Stop looking at me like that," he growled.

I reached for the hand mirror and stared at the spinning rainbow circles in my eyes. They grew in size and retracted like rubber bands as they were forced into place when I blinked.

It wasn't the worst look, and I didn't see any strange additions to my skin or hair. But as I held up my fingers there was a subtle shift in the air. As I moved around it was like watching myself move in water and seeing the streams that followed my actions.

I concentrated and the transparent blob surrounding my fingers stretched and elongated nearly a foot away from my hand.

Trippy.

The longer I stared the clearer the blob became. Soon enough, I watched it ripple like a disturbed pond and blossom into a kaleidoscope of different colors. It brought forth a touch of mana from within, each a different taste, a flavor.

Golden yellow that warmed my skin, an electrifying pale-blue that misted my fingers; it kept changing, reminding me of my familiars.

"What do you see?" Sereza asked.

I blinked at the strange thin film surrounding her body. It felt weak, and pathetic. It had splotches of green and deep yellow with a swirling pink hidden at the center just above her sternum.

I reached a hand out and brushed against the film before she slapped my hand away and pressed her back against the wall.

"Don't do that again," she demanded.

"What did it feel like?"

"Like you rubbed against my brain."

I turned to Igas who displayed an aura of solid white tinged with blue. It locked together like plates of armor around him. Even as I stared it remained whole and unmoving.

Interesting. Makes sense.

Celenae's was the same but it reminded me of her barriers overlapping across her body.

And finally, I turned to Teddy. I had tried to ignore him but now that I caught sight of it, it was impossible to miss.

His aura was the sun, a gentle warmth that hid a wellspring of power. I could barely see past it–not without concentrating. And it wasn't a bubble or a haze like the others, but in the shape of a lantern. He cocked his head, and the image remained unmoving.

It finally clicked, and I took another pass around the room.

"I think... I think I can see your aura? This is weird."

Click!

Celenae brandished her pen like a sword ready for battle. "Describe it."

After a solid half hour of explaining everything in excruciating detail, I was finally given permission to test the skill's ability and tapped into Teddy's mind.

His thoughts were clear to me and we even communicated telepathically.

As I pulled away he shivered.

"That was an experience. Probably need some practice with that or you'll be noticed the moment you attempt to connect."

I frowned. "Galarion does it so easily. That's annoying."

Teddy patted my shoulder. "It's not a bad thing having to practice. Consider it a privilege that you get to explore your powers. Some skills are beyond simple."

I dropped the transformation and returned Galarion to the soulspace.

"Last one. Ready, Celenae?"

"Begin," she ordered.

Zagreus splashed onto the floor and rose his three heads high. "Hi!"

He did his rounds and got his scritches in before I leaned down.

"This will be our first transformation. Excited?"

"Yes! Together with Master!" he hissed.

Spirit Lord's Invocation.

His mana flowed into me rather than shoot and it pierced deep into my chest. My heart thumped and a flood of power rushed into my limbs.

As I observed the internal changes, my hands and arms grew patches of red scales and my fingers sharpened into powerful claws. They were meaty, far thicker than any transformation–even Magnus'.

"Oh this is cool." I punched the air and my fist created a low whistle. "I could get used to this. Hey Arturous, fist bump."

I extended my arm and Arturous knocked his far larger fist into mine. The impact transferred but it was far reduced and absorbed by the scales at the end. They shook the excess energy before returning to normal.

"Celenae, barrier."

A barrier formed before me and I jabbed. There was a smack and I punched again and again, till I ran out of steam.

Celenae stood up and sketched the barrier on a new page, including the thin cracks lining the crystal.

"Felt like Igas' blows. What about your feet?"

They had red claws and scales extending across the boots and shin guards but they weren't the same as my fists. They didn't look like bear paws.

I did a series of kicks with a lot less damage.

Celenae added the entry and summoned a blade. "Zagreus has the ability to regenerate. Shall we test the blood?"

I nodded and she stabbed the blade through the back of my hand. It sunk deep before it reached my actual skin and nicked my knuckles.

The injury sealed itself and the fists regenerated. As the scales hardened I flexed and threw another punch.

"Not bad. Increased regeneration then. How extensive do we want to test this?"

Celenae's smile reached her ears.

"Extensively."